Hello everybody!
I am a new member and here is my profile.
No need to respond.
I’m just trying to be a good forum member following the instructions from the sign up email 
dumdumdum
[Size=4]Corresponding South Park song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tu4y7x9LRyY[/size]
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Where are you from (country)?
Netherlands. -
How did you find this forum (Google search – if so, what search terms? Via link from a forum or website – if so, what page? Other?)
Google search for finasteride side effects. -
What is your current age, height, weight?
38, 182 cm, 74kg -
Do you excercise regularly? If so, what type of excercise?
4x per week fitness (mix cardio/strength) -
What type of diet do you eat (vegetarian, meat eater, raw, fast-food/organic healthy)?
Normal with ample fruit and vegetables. -
Why did you take Finasteride (hair loss, BPH, other)?
Hair loss. -
For how long did you take Finasteride (weeks/months/years)?
12 years. -
How old were you, and WHEN (date) did you start Finasteride?
25 (march 2005) -
How old were you when you quit, and WHEN (date) did you quit?
37 (march 2017) -
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Taper off.
6 years: 1mg per day.
6 years: 0.5 mg per day.
2 months: 0.375 mg per day. (aug/sep 2016)
3 months: 0.250 mg per day. (okt/nov/dec 2016)
2 months: 0.125 mg per day. (jan/feb 2017) -
What type of Finasteride did you use – Propecia, Proscar, Fincar or other generic?
Propecia. -
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
First 6 years: 1.0 mg per day, next 6 years: 0.5 mg per day, then taper off. -
How long into your use of Finasteride did you notice the onset of side effects?
After 1 year I first noted decreased erections which gradually became worse.
After 6 years I first noted testicle/penis shrinkage which gradually became worse.
Other possible side effects (insomnia, mild depression) only started 4 months after quitting. -
What side effects did you experience while on the drug that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Put an X beside all that apply:
Sexual
[ ] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[X] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[X] Loss of Morning Erections
[X] Loss of Spontaneous Erections
[ ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections (still present; this was tested in a hospital)
[ ] Watery Ejaculate
[X] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[ ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[ ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[ ] Memory Loss / Forgetfullness
[ ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[X] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[ ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[ ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[ ] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[X] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[ ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[X] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[ ] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[ ] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[ ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[ ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness
[ ] Increased hair loss
[X] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[ ] Other (please explain)
[X} Insomnia
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What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
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If you have pre or post-Finasteride bloodtests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (pls post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?
2015 aug (before stopping):
Testosteron 14.6 nmol/L (Range 10.0-30.0)
LH 2.9 U/L (Range: 1.7-8.6)
FSH 3.73 E/L (Range: 1.0-12.0)
PSA 1.1 ug/L (Range: 0.00-2.00)
ASAT 31 U/L (Range: ?-?)
ALAT 29 U/L (Range: ?-?)
Dihydrotestosteron 0.42 nmol/L (Range: 0.87-3.46)
2017 jul (after stopping):
Testosteron 10.8 nmol/L (Range 10.0-30.0)
LH 4.5 U/L (Range: 1.7-8.6)
FSH 5.1 U/L (Range: 1.0-12.0)
PSA 0.93 ug/L (Range: 0.00-2.00)
Prolactine 188 mU/L (Range: 0-450)
SHBG 37.2 nmol/L (Range: 12.0-75.0)
Oestradiol 41 pmol/L (Range: 28-156)
TSH 0.91 mU/L (Range: 0.40-4.00)
Progesteron 0.9 nmol/L (Range: 0.0-0.5)
So testosteron, progesteron and (probably) dht are outside the range.
(I still need to get an update of dht.)
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Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience with Finasteride?
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Tell us your story, in your own words, about your Finasteride usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
2004
I started using the drug (1mg per day).
2005
I noticed erections were slightly poorer. (No longer “inconvenient” erections.)
2007
Erections were substantially poorer
2011
I noticed testicular and penis shrinkage.
I halved the dose (0.5 mg per day).
2015
Examination by urologist:
- Nocturnal erections: Ok
- Blood flow in penis: Ok
- Fertility: Ok
- Testosteron / testicle size: somewhat low but well within normal range
Despite the good results he adviced me to stop based on “Michael Irwig - Persistent Sexual and Nonsexual Adverse Effects of Finasteride in Younger Men (2013)”.
2016 aug - 2017 mar
Tapered off finasteride
2017 jun
Mild depression symptoms after discovering erectile dysfunction is persistent and other personal adversity.
2017 jul
Insomnia. I always slept long and deep and had problems waking up. But on 13 july this suddenly flipped and I seem unable to sleep longer than 5 hours straight. This has substantial negative impact on my life. I started sleep therapy this week.
